Chapter 344: Chapter 61: The Deep Pond’s Water Viper and the Hundred-Jointed Sweet Flag
In the midst of the greenish miasma mist, there were four brightly shining flames.
The flames crackled as they burned the miasma, emitting sounds like the crackling of burning wood.
Four Shushan Sword Immortals carefully surveyed their surroundings within the range of the firelight.
“Found it!” Sima Changyan exclaimed as he noticed a point of Spiritual Light in the distance.
Following the guidance of the Spiritual Light, they hurried over and saw a stalk of Spirit Grass glowing with Spiritual Light. It was growing at the edge of a pond, in the muddy ground.
This plant, known as calamus, typically grew up to nine sections and was therefore also called Nine-sectioned Calamus.
However, if it grew in an environment rich with Yimu energy, it could continue to grow, producing a new section each year, and after a hundred years, it would be known as Hundred-sectioned Calamus, capable of refining the Hundred Grasses Sweet Taste Elixir, which when consumed could substitute for five years of Refining Mansion Cultivation.
Although it was only equivalent to five years of cultivation, the difficulty of obtaining Hundred-sectioned Calamus was relatively low among all the secret medicines of the Purple Mansion—it only required finding a place abundant with Yimu Spiritual Energy for a chance to find it.
Therefore, everyone was overjoyed: If Hundred-sectioned Calamus could be found here, then couldn’t there be other Spirit Grasses as well?
“I shall take this herb first,” Sima Changyan quickly said, “and then hand it over to Senior Brother Duan for safekeeping. We’ll divide it later based on the value of the Spiritual Medicine.”
The so-called “Treasure division method” was a method of distributing spoils commonly used among Loose Cultivators, and its principle was quite simple:
For example, if A, B, and C together obtained a large pile of treasures, A would divide them into three equal parts according to their value, and then B and C would each choose one part, leaving the remaining part for A.
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If A’s division was unreasonable, resulting in one part having significantly higher value, B and C would both choose that part.
Then, A would have to redistribute some of the treasures from that part to the other parts, or set a price (i.e., the one who eventually obtained that part of the treasure would need to compensate the others with Spirit Stones equivalent to the set price), in order to make the value of each part of the spoils as equal as possible.
Sima Changyan suggested the Treasure division method, and Duan Fenhai readily agreed with no objections, while Ling Yunpo and An Zhisu looked confused.
Ling Yunpo had never shared spoils with others before because both Qiu Changtian and Wei Dongliu always took control of the team from the start and picked the most valuable items for themselves, leaving the rest to be divided as “you guys decide among yourselves,” without ever considering the value.
An Zhisu, on the other hand, had almost no experience working with companions, thus hadn’t thought about how to distribute the spoils.
So Sima Changyan explained the rules again, and after discussing it, the two found no issues and also agreed.
Once everyone had reached an agreement, Sima Changyan went to pick the herb.
However, as he approached, the water surface suddenly rippled, and then a huge head emerged abruptly. With its tongue flickering, its golden vertical pupils coldly stared at them.
It was a white python… No, the experienced Ling Yunpo quickly realized it was a white Water Viper.
Water Viper, the precursor to a Jiaolong. In the dragon lands of the Eastern Emperor Realm, the current True Body is a Water Viper.
Having been a Water Viper himself, Ling Yunpo knew exactly what it was. Its bloodline-instilled bestial instincts were mostly arrogance, cruelty, cold-bloodedness, and a tendency to be irritable, with strong aggressiveness and invasiveness.
Surely, since the Water Viper chose to reveal itself suddenly rather than wait for someone to get close and then ambush them, it must not have been confident enough to take on four at once.
Yes, your guess is spot on.
Sima Changyan was visibly startled, but by the time he regained his composure, he saw that Duan Fenhai’s Cangtie Sword and An Zhisu’s Flying Smoke Sword had almost simultaneously shot out.
The Water Viper’s eyes bulged as a blur dashed by, and both flying swords were sent flying back with a shock.
“It’s the tail!” Duan Fenhai shouted a warning.
The tail can also be used to lash out at Flying Swords? Ling Yunpo felt as if he had received an enlightenment and decided, upon his return, to practice with Long Hu… No, that’s not right, to practice against Long Hu, to avoid being whipped in the face with her big tail every day.
“You have a tail, don’t I have one too?”
Sima Changyan rapidly retreated, while An Zhisu stepped forward to meet the charge. Her Flying Smoke Sword spun backward in a reverse roll and stabbed towards the Water Viper’s eyes once again.
The Water Viper lashed out with its tail again, hitting the Flying Smoke Sword with the speed of lightning, clearly anticipating someone targeting its eyes.
The moment the Flying Smoke Sword was struck, it transformed into a puff of blue smoke, then suddenly exploded into a brilliant blaze, enveloping the Water Viper completely.
The next second, the Water Viper turned its head and dove directly into the deep pool.
Its massive body, along with the flames that were still burning, were all submerged by the waters of the pool.
Ling Yunpo immediately shot out the Green Duckweed Sword, its Sword Light sweeping towards the poolside Nine-sectioned Calamus. However, just then, another tail emerged from the water, lashing straight toward the Green Duckweed Sword.
Clearly, even though the Water Viper used the pool water to extinguish the flames, it had no intention of fleeing. It stayed close to the water’s surface, unwilling to give up on the Nine-sectioned Calamus.
Ling Yunpo was left speechless: a mere five-year Refining Mansion spiritual medicine, and it insisted on confronting four same-rank Shushan Sword Immortals head-on?
“Men die for wealth, birds for food,” they say, and there seems to be some truth to it.
He manipulated the Green Duckweed Sword to return swiftly, while simultaneously shooting out the Thunder Punishment Sword, aiming again for that Nine-sectioned Calamus.
Seeing he was not giving up either, the Water Viper became flustered and attempted the same move, aiming to strike the Thunder Punishment Sword with its tail.
But as the Sword Dao Techniques of the Thunder Punishment Sword were activated, a bolt of thunder trembled down, shaking the Water Viper’s entire body into paralysis.
Seizing the opportunity, Ling Yunpo achieved Man-Sword Unity with the Green Duckweed Sword, transforming into a dazzling beam of Sword Light, and directly cleaved the Water Viper in two.
“Well done!” Duan Fenhai shouted in praise, “This tactic of feinting to the east and striking the west contains the true essence of Swords Immortal’s magical combat!”
An Zhisu also showed a proud expression because this Two-Handed Sword Control Technique of feinting to the east and striking the west was personally taught to Ling Yunpo by her.
Now that her junior brother had thought to use the Water Viper’s greed and obsession for the Nine-sectioned Calamus to execute a beautiful tactical strike, it was clear he had almost completely absorbed her knowledge of magical combat.
Sima Changyan also couldn’t stop praising, though he felt a puzzling doubt in his heart.
Water Vipers belong to the Jiaolong species, their bodies naturally impervious to blade and spear thanks to their dragon scales. This white Water Viper, aligned with the water element of the Five Elements, used water pressure to temper the strength of its flesh, making the surface of its body exceptionally hard.
Whether it was An Zhisu’s Flying Smoke Sword or Duan Fenhai’s Cangtie Sword, they were both repelled and sent flying back by the creature’s tail, without leaving a single mark on its scales, which spoke volumes.
This Po Yun Sword Immortal… always stood in the shadow of his mentor, the Weed-Cutting Sword Immortal, and under the radiance of his sister.
When people talked about him, they usually referred to him as “that person’s junior brother,” occasionally calling him “Po Yun Sword Immortal” or even “Ling Poyun”, often getting his name wrong. Despite being second on the Immortal Sword Ranking, it showed that public opinion discounted his actual strength.
Who would have thought that his use of Man-Sword Unity, which neither the Flying Smoke Sword nor the Cangtie Sword could touch, would be able to cleave the formidable Water Viper into two with such ease!
Thinking further, if Ling Yunpo faced Duan Fenhai or An Zhisu in the grand competition and went all out with Man-Sword Unity from the start, what could they do?
If they used their Life-bound Sword Artifacts to defend, they would undoubtedly end up with broken swords and spitting blood!
With that thought, Sima Changyan immediately concluded:
No wonder, in the last Shushan grand competition, the Po Yun Sword Immortal only clashed with Duan Fenhai using pure swordsmanship on the stage, neither employing Sword Dao Techniques nor Man-Sword Unity. Turns out he was hiding his true power!